New Smyrna Coast Guard tuning up new, fast rescue boat

Wednesday

Feb 27, 2013 at 12:01 AMFeb 27, 2013 at 6:16 AM

MARK I. JOHNSONSTAFF WRITER

NEW SMYRNA BEACH — The U.S. Coast Guard's latest addition to Station Ponce de Leon Inlet is faster, runs shallower and will likely reduce the time it takes boat crews to complete their missions. Earlier this month, the New Smyrna Beach station became the third in Sector Jacksonville to receive one of the service's new high tech response boats. Known as a 45-foot Response Boat — Medium or RB-M for short, the new craft can cruise 20 mph faster in a foot shallower water than the station's current workhorse, the 47-foot Motor Life Boat. "It is like comparing a truck and a Ferrari," Petty Officer 2nd Class Mark Tuschak said of the two boats. "The RB-M is a lot faster and a lot more agile." The Response Boat-Medium is one of the newest craft in the Coast Guard's fleet with the first one delivered to Station Little Creek, Va., in April 2008. Designed to replace the Coast Guard's old 41-foot utility boat, the new vessel is part of the Coast Guard's plan to standardize and revitalize its shore-based boat fleet, said the boat's driver, Boatswain's Mate 3rd Class Douglas Strong. It incorporates technology, like shock-mitigating seats , that makes rides easier on the four-person crew, and an advanced radio system to better communicate with each other and local, state and other federal authorities. The RB-M's twin-diesel engines power a water-jet propulsion system that eliminates propellers, making it safer to operate around or retrieve someone from the water and protects the engines from debris. Joysticks — not a traditional wheel — are used to control water jets for steering, giving the new craft a different feel than the tiller and throttles used to maneuver the Motor Life Boat, Strong said. "It is more like driving a car than driving a boat," he said. Strong said the new boat is much more nimble than its predecessor, being able to spin within its own length as well going from full speed to a dead stop in the same 45-foot distance. With a range of 250 miles, the new boat is more capable of handling the for calm water, long range missions — search and rescue, fisheries management and similar duties — commonly assigned to the New Smyrna Beach station than the heavy sea duties the slower Motor Life Boat is designed to handle. And with a top speed of almost 49 mph, the newest addition to Station Ponce will allow boat crews to respond in nearly half the time. "The new boat is a great platform for conducting our missions," said Station Ponce de Leon Inlet officer in charge, Master Chief Petty Officer Mike Jensen. "With the increase in speed it will help in our response times and allow us to better serve the Daytona community." It is expected to take Station Ponce's boat crews about two months to get acquainted with their new vessel, during which time they will continue to use the station's Motor Life Boat. Once Ponce's crews are adapted to the new boat, the older one will be relocated to a heavy weather station somewhere in the northeast part of the country. U.S. Coast Guard Station Ponce de Leon Inlet has been in operation since the late 1930s. It has a crew of about 30 active duty personnel whose area of responsibility stretches from Matanzas Inlet near St. Augustine south to Haulover Canal near Merritt Island and from the St. Johns River east to 50 miles into the Atlantic Ocean.